Insole or inner sole with pressure ventilation

ABSTRACT

Insole or inner sole which is intended for an item of footwear and is designed in the form of a pressure-ventilation sole ( 40   a - e ) such that a flexurally elastic pressure-exerting plate ( 10, 20, 30 ) rests on a lower sole, said pressure-exerting plate being displaceable by the user&#39;s body weight, when the user is moving, into transverse profiling in the interspace between the pressure-exerting plate ( 10, 20, 30 ), which is in the vicinity of the sole of the foot, and the lower sole and displacing the contained air volume in the manner of ventilation, wherein the lower sole of the pressure-ventilation sole ( 40   a - e ) is configured in the form of a corrugated structured sole ( 1 ) from a spring steel or a comparable plastic material, the transverse profiling thereof being designed in the form of a corrugated profile and being stable, and resistant to deformation, in relation to a compressive force acting vertically on the structured sole ( 1 ), and that the pressure-exerting plate ( 10, 20, 30 ), which is in the vicinity of the sole of the foot, can be displaced into the dimensionally stable corrugation valleys ( 12 ) of the structured sole ( 1 ) in the manner of a pumping and/or compression plate.

The invention relates to an insole or inner sole with pressureventilation according to the preamble of claim 1.

With DE 1 872 338 U1, a footwear insert that causes the ventilation ofthe sole bed of the foot has become known, said sole being able to beboth firmly incorporated into the sole material of footwear, but also tobe used as a so-called “insole.”

According to the invention, the pressure-ventilation sole should act insuch a way that an air circulation is created between the sole of anitem of footwear and the sole of the foot by the changing pressure andrelief processes when walking in a layer-like insert sheet, said aircirculation on the one hand preventing the unpleasant formation of sweatand the unhealthy effects of the lack of ventilation of the sole skin ofthe foot and on the other hand allowing a pleasant cooling in hotweather.

Between the cover and under layer consisting of a tissue material, afilm folded in zig-zag form is inserted, preferably made of plasticmaterial, which is attached to the tissue cover layers, for example, atthe edges of the toes, at the edge of the heel area and in the area ofthe arch of the foot. The ribs of the film run preferably transverselyto the longitudinal direction of the sole. The film is smaller in itsoutline than the outline of an item of footwear insert, so that a ductrunning is created around the entire foot bed between the openings ofthe cavities and the cover and under layers connected to the edge.

If, for example, the zig-zag film is pressed into the area of the ballof the foot, the air present in the cavities in this area escapessideways into the duct and passes through the fabric of the cover andunderlayer to the edge of the footbed, where an air exchange occurs.Some of the compressed air reaches the sole of the foot through thepores of the fabric of the cover layer.

In addition to the arrangement of an insert consisting of azig-zag-shaped folded plastic film, the publication also reveals twozigzag-shaped plastic films resting one on top of each other in a mirrorimage, wherein said films fold flat when pressed together and displacethe air stored in the cavities between the folds in the direction of theperimeter edge of the insert. Likewise, air-filled, longitudinallyconnected hoses are described, which are installed transversely to thelongitudinal axis of the insert and which are compressed when walking,wherein the air contained in the respective hose is pressed out.

The disadvantage of a compressible and zig-zag-shaped folded plasticfilm is that the film strips converging at an acute angle in a creasecan break and split when compressing during the walking movement. Thelifespan of such a film is therefore very limited. When breaking thecrease, the broken up pieces penetrate through the cover layersconsisting of fabric and can hurt the sole of the foot.

In addition, disturbing cracking and crackling noises are generatedduring the roll-off movement. Because of the flexibility(compressibility) of the sole construction during walking movement, nostable counterforce is generated on the sole of the foot by the ground,thereby leading to an unsafe rolling movement of the sole of the footand the danger of lateral buckling of the foot arch. Therefore, thedanger of Halux formation cannot be excluded.

In another exemplary embodiment, the above-mentioned document describestwo zig-zag-shaped folded plastic films resting on top of each other ina mirror image, where the same risk of breakage and noise generationexists, and also the other problem that the upper zig-zag position canshift compared to the lower zig-zag position and the two layers engageinto a mutual gearing engagement, whereby the ventilation effectdisappears. Fastening both layers securely to avoid displacement is thusdifficult, if not impossible.

Additionally, the air-filled hoses mentioned in the third embodiment,that were applied onto each other and connected to each other in thearea of their contact lines, have not proven to be effective. Inaddition to the creation of undesirable noise, there is a danger thatthe hoses will break and be displaced relative to each other in the longterm because of the strong forces caused by compressing.

The disadvantage with the known pressure-ventilation sole is thereforethat a sole that is running-stable and counter-pressure independentrelative to floor unevenness is not provided, because the lower andupper sole plates consist of a flexurally elastic textile material.There is therefore only a lower, flat sole plate on which thezigzag-folded film rests, said film being covered upwards by an equallyflat, flexurally elastic pressure-exerting plate on which the sole ofthe foot rests. A stable support of the sole of the foot when running isnot possible due to the flat sole plate. Rather, the (lower) flat soleplate adapts in an undesirable way to the ground and thus does not forma stable support of the sole of the foot during the rolling movement onan uneven surface.

The printing plate which is in the vicinity of the sole of the foot isalso formed as a flexurally elastic flat plate, so that the knownpressure-ventilation sole consists of two flexurally elastic flatplates, which have a mutual distance from each other, between which azigzag-folded plastic film is arranged.

Thus, it can be determined that a pressure-ventilation sole according tothis prior art having air-filled cavities in the area of a zigzag-foldedplastic film that collapse upon a pressure load is disadvantageous inseveral respects, and neither provides sufficient support for the soleof the foot when walking, nor has a long service life, nor ensuresadequate ventilation, additionally leading to possible injuries to thesole of the foot.

With U.S. Pat. No. 2,234,190 A, a multi-layer spring steel sole made oftwo separated zig-zag-shaped spring steel sheets has become known,between which a film bag filled with air is arranged. The zigzagprofiles are arranged in a vertical direction to the longitudinal axis.The mentioned multi-layer spring steel sole has the purpose of providinga damping effect due to the air-filled film bag arranged between thespring steel layers. This means that the ventilation of the sole of thefoot is thus not possible.

U.S. Pat. No. 2,334,719 A is a pressure-ventilation sole made of rubberor other compressible material in which grooves and web-like projectionsare arranged in a variety of row- and column-shaped ventilation points.These ventilation points are formed as short, rectangular ventilationpoints, the longitudinal axis of which is directed at right angles tothe longitudinal axis of the pressure-ventilation sole. During walking,the grooves that are transversely directed to the longitudinal axis arecompressed due to the buckling effect in the sole and squeeze the aircontained therein through perforation holes in the direction of the soleof the foot.

Instead of the arrangement of compressible grooves, the document alsodescribes an embodiment in which a corrugated intermediate layer isarranged in the interspace of the upper and underlayers made of rubber,said intermediate layer providing an improved suspension capacity andalso consisting of an elastically compressible rubber material.

The insert that is corrugated and compressible forms air-filled cavitiesin the interspace of the corrugation crests and corrugation valleys,wherein the expanding air is displaced when walking.

The disadvantage of the above arrangement is that the ventilation pointsare only short and row-shaped and column-shaped at mutual distance toeach other in the pressure-ventilation sole. This means that theventilation effect is minimal.

Another disadvantage is that the ventilation effect is provided by therubber-elastic compression of the corrugated insert, which results inthe disadvantage that the insert is subject to severe wear and that theelasticity of the corrugated insert decreases with age. The corrugatedstructure therefore collapses and the ventilation effect is no longerachieved.

With the object of U.S. Pat. No. 4,910,882 B1, a furtherpressure-ventilation sole has become known, in which the air enclosed inthe trapezoidally profiled grooves is to be pressed out in a soleconsisting of transverse ribs during the walking movement. Theventilation effect is minimal. Forced pressure ventilation is notprovided.

In DE 20 20 2008 018 366 U1, which belongs to the same applicantcommunity, a perforated insole has been described as a structured solemade of a spring steel or a comparable plastic material having arib-shaped cross-profiling at the angle to the longitudinal center line,wherein the cross-profiling in the forefoot area is different from thatin the hind foot area. A ventilation effect had only been described inconjunction with a honeycomb or duct system installed below the insolein an item of footwear.

In addition to the low ventilation effect, the installation height ofsuch a construction is also increased in an undesirable way.

The corrugation profile consists of a number of successively arrangedcorrugations, of which each consists of a corrugation crest and asubsequent corrugation valley.

With regard to the further characteristics of such a structured sole oran insole, reference is made to DE 100 15 240 A1 or DE 199 56 072 A1.

In these two documents, the structure and function of such an insoleand/or inner sole are exactly described and the properties describedtherein of such a formed structured sole are also subject-matter of thepresent invention.

When using an insole or inner sole according to the subject-matter of DE20 2008 018 366 U1, it was shown that the ventilation effect andmoisture transport could be significantly increased.

The invention is therefore based on the object, starting from an insoleor inner sole for an item of footwear, according to the subject-matterof DE 1 872 338 U1, to significantly improve the air and moisturetransport from the insole and/or the inner sole, in particular to extendthe life of such an insole or inner sole, to avoid a risk of injury andnoise during rolling and to provide an improved support function for thesole of the foot.

In order to achieve the object set, the invention is characterized bythe technical teaching of claim 1.

It is advantageous that pressure ventilation takes place using thespecial properties of the corrugated ribbed insole or inner solebecause, according to the invention, an upper flexurally elasticpressure-exerting plate is arranged on the corrugation profile of such astructured sole, said pressure-exerting plate being displaceable intothe corrugation valleys of the structured sole by the user's body weightwhen walking.

It is advantageous that the (below) corrugated structured sole of thepressure-ventilation sole is made of a spring steel or a comparableflexurally elastic plastic material, whose cross-profiling is formed asa corrugation profile with almost rounded corrugation crests andcorrugation valleys and is stable and resistant to deformation comparedto a pressure force acting vertically on the structured sole. Thepressure-exerting plate which is in the vicinity of the sole can bepushed into the shape-stable corrugation valleys of the structured solein the manner of a pumping and/or a compression plate and displaces theair in the range of the ventilation ducts formed in the interspacebetween the top of the structured sole and the underside of thepressure-exerting plate. In this case, the one corrugation structurehaving a plate-shaped pressure-exerting plate made of a flexurallyelastic plastic with a preferred thickness in the range between 1 to 3mm can be formed continuously over the entire sole length.

In another embodiment, the plate-shaped pressure-exerting plate may beconnected to an elastomeric pressure body, which ensures an improvedbedding of the sole of the foot on the pressure-exerting plate havingthe corrugation structure. Furthermore, the corrugation structure canalso extend to the top of the elastomeric pressure body in the vicinityof the sole, so that a pressure of the sole of the foot acts directly onthe corrugation structure of the pressure-exerting plate connected tothe elastomeric pressure body.

In comparison to DE 1 872 338 U1, the well-known three-layer solestructure, consisting of a lower flat sole, a zig-zag film attached toit, and a further flat sole in the vicinity of the sole is avoided and atwo-layer structure of two sole profiles is preferably—but notexclusively—proposed, wherein the lower sole can be formed as acorrugated, flexurally elastic deformation-stable structured sole, whilethe upper sole can be designed either as an at least partiallycomplementary pressure-exerting sole or as a flat sole.

This makes the sole construction easier, flatter in its height and thepreviously necessary zig-zag-film is determined by the sole structure oftwo directly adjacent structured soles, namely the lower corrugatedstructured sole and the upper pressure-exerting plate that is either atleast partially complementary corrugated or flat. Thus, with a simplerand flatter sole structure, a reinforced ventilation effect results witha structured sole construction supported against the ground, wherein thelower sole—because of its property as a corrugated structured sole—isnot compressible, in contrast to the zig-zag-shaped plastic film of theprior art.

Thus, a pressure-ventilation sole is described as it was not previouslyknown. The well-known rib structure of the structured sole (see DE 10015 240 A1 or DE 199 56 072 A1) is now used for pressure and/or forcedventilation of the structured sole, which is due to the addition of aflexurally elastic pressure-exerting plate, which is placed on the ribstructure of the structured sole.

It was recognized that the structured sole known from the abovedocuments, preferably formed as a ribbed spring steel sole during therolling of the sole of the foot in an item of footwear allows only abend in the longitudinal direction to the rib structure. The respectivebending line is therefore parallel to the respective longitudinalextension of the spring steel rib. For this reason, the structured soleallows a rolling movement in the longitudinal direction of thestructured sole, but prevents a deflection in a vertical direction forthis purpose.

Compared to DE 1 872 338 U1, the advantage is achieved in that across-stable support of the sole of the foot is provided and thepressure-ventilation sole is not compressed during the rolling movement,which resulted in the prior art in addition to an undesirable noise alsoin an insufficient support of the sole of the foot and an unsafe runningfeeling.

This leads to the realization that the corrugation crests and thecomplementary corrugation valleys of the structured sole are stable andresistant to deformation compared to a pressure force actingperpendicularly on the structured sole. They therefore do not bend overwith such a pressure load and do not deform. They therefore act as aform-stable counter-bearing for a pressure-exerting plate placed on thecorrugation crests, said plate being able to therefore deform into theshape-stable corrugation valleys and compress the air volume presentthere.

Thus, the pressure-exerting plate applied to the rib-shapedcross-profiling acts like a compression tool. The pressure-exertingplate must therefore be compared to a piston that penetrates into thedeformation-stable cylinder spaces (corrugation valleys of therib-shaped structure of the structured sole), thereby resulting in apressure ventilation. However, it mirrors the bending movement of thestructured sole during the rolling movement of the sole of the foot anddeforms flexibly together with the structured sole.

This is an effect that was not yet known, because the addition of aflexurally elastic pressure-exerting plate covering the rib-shapedcross-profiling of the structural insole leads to increased pressure orforced ventilation of the insole or inner sole, which results from thebody weight of the user who rolls his body weight on thepressure-exerting plate.

Thus, a new feature of the well-known spring-elastic structured sole ispresented because it was recognized that the corrugation valleys andcorrugation crests of the known structured sole that are not flexurallyelastic when under a pressure load from above can now be used as a notdeformable, groove- or gutter-shaped compression space, if a flexurallyelastic pressure-exerting plate is applied on the rib-shapedcross-profiling of the structured sole, said pressure-exerting platebeing suitable to be displaced by the body weight of the user into thecorrugation valleys of the structured sole. The structured sole remainsstable and is not compressible.

This results in increased forced ventilation of the corrugation valleysof the structured sole by means of the pressure-exerting plate placed onit, which should be fastened as secure as possible to avoid thedisplacement on the structured sole.

A displacement protection can be accomplished in different ways.

In a first embodiment it may be provided that the pressure-exertingplate is arranged in a space-filling manner in the interior of an itemof footwear, so that it is attached on all sides to the inner sides ofthe upper material of an item of footwear.

In a different embodiment, it may be provided that the pressure-exertingplate is glued in a fixed manner on the corrugation crests of thestructured sole arranged underneath.

In a third embodiment, it may be provided that the pressure-exertingplate is simply loosely placed on the structured sole.

The resulting pressure-ventilation sole can be used as an insole in afootwear or as an inner sole in the style of a sole chassis in an itemof footwear.

In a preferred embodiment, the pressure-exerting plate is formed as aflat plate and can consist of any flexurally elastic material, such asalso a plate-shaped spring steel material, which does not have ribs, orof a plastic plate with thickness of 0.1 to 2 mm, for example, or anyother suitable plate-shaped and flexurally elastic materials.

In a first embodiment, the surface of the pressure-exerting plate cancorrespond approximately to the surface of the underlying structuredsole. The structured sole can be developed either as a half sole or as afull sole—both as an insole and as an inner sole. Especially when usedin women's pumps or other comparable footwear types, it is usuallysufficient to arrange the insole or inner sole (structured sole) only inthe forefoot area. In these cases, the pressure-exerting plate is alsoapproximately the same as the structured sole.

In a second embodiment it may be provided that the pressure-exertingplate covers only one part of the surface of the structured sole. Forcedpressure ventilation only occurs in this coverage area.

In order to dissipate the air streams forming in the corrugation valleysof the structured sole, which originate from the aforementioned forcedventilation, it is provided in a first embodiment that the air streamsflow out at (in the lateral direction at the angle to the direction oftravel) the end faces of the gutter-shaped compression spaces (these arethe groove-shaped corrugation valleys of the structured sole) in thevicinity of the end face and thus enter an item of footwear interior onthe inside of the upper material of an item of footwear.

In another embodiment it may be provided that the upperpressure-exerting plate covering the lower structured sole has multipleperforations, so that not only a compressed air flow in the longitudinaldirection of the corrugation valleys of the structured sole is created,but the air flow is additionally (or alone) introduced by the holes orperforations in the pressure-exerting plate directly upwards into theinterior of an item of footwear against the sole of the foot of theuser.

This ensures that every time the pressure load is changed, said pressureload being acted upon the pressure-exerting plate during walking orduring a change of position on the pressure-exerting plate by the user'sfoot, leading to pressure ventilation of the compression chamber. Asstated at the beginning, the respective gutter-shaped compression spaceis formed by the corrugation valleys of the structured sole, the uppersealing of which is formed by the deforming pressure-exerting plate. Theuser is running on air, so to speak, because the air trapped by theventilation ducts between the corrugation structure of the structuredsole and the pressure-exerting plate on it forms an additional aircushion. which provides a particularly favorable and gentle bedding ofthe sole.

It may be provided in some areas of the pressure-ventilation sole thatsome or more of the ventilation ducts between the corrugation structureof the structured sole and the pressure-exerting plate lying on it arehermetically sealed in order to form air-filled compression spaces thatprovide a particularly pleasant running feeling. Such closed air volumesare preferably arranged in the heel area.

In another embodiment, it was recognized that a further increase inpressure or forced ventilation in the interior of an item of footwear ispossible in that the pressure-exerting plate is no longer formed as aflat flexurally elastic plate, but also has a corrugation structure thatis at least partially complementary to the corrugation structure of theunderlying structured sole. The corrugation structure of thispressure-exerting plate is compressible, in contrast to the corrugationstructure of the underlying structured sole. This means that thecorrugation crests and corrugation valleys of the pressure-exertingplate are pressed flat at a pressure load by the sole of the foot anddisplace themselves into the corrugation structure of the structuredsole and compress the air in the area of the ventilation ducts and ejectit in a forced manner in the longitudinal direction of the ventilationduct.

This means that the corrugation valleys of the corrugation structure ofthe pressure-exerting plate on the corrugation crests of the structuredsole and that the corrugation crests of the pressure-exerting plate aremirror-imaged against the corrugation valleys of the structured sole andthus a variety of gutter-shaped, pressure-ventilated compression spacesin the area of the thus formed ventilation ducts are formed.

Thus, on the one hand, the air volume of the compression space in thearea of a ventilation duct is significantly increased, because a wellcrest of the pressure-exerting plate lies opposite the respectivecorrugation valley in the rib-shaped cross-section of the structuredsole. Thus, the air volume in the compression chamber is doubled.

If the flexural elasticity of the corrugated pressure-exerting plate isformed in such a way that the corrugation crests of thepressure-exerting plate are displaced when walking or when the user'sfoot shifts by weight into the corrugation valleys of the structuredsole, there is an increased pressure ventilation effect in thegutter-shaped compression spaces of the structured sole.

This significantly increases the forced ventilation effect.

In the use of such a corrugation structure having a pressure-exertingplate, it can be provided that such a corrugated pressure-exerting platealso consists of a flexurally elastic material, such as, for example, aplastic plate or a flexurally elastic metal plate which—in thiscase—preferably consists of a spring steel material.

It may also be provided that the corrugation structure of thepressure-exerting plate, whose surface is directed to the user's sole ofthe foot, is filled with an additional elastomeric coating, so that thesurface of the corrugated pressure-exerting plate directed to the user'ssole of the foot is completely flat, continuous and soft-elastic. Thiscreates an elastomeric pressure body, which consists of, for example, afoamed, closed-cell plastic.

In all cases, it may be provided that the pressure-exerting plate(either as a flat plate or as a corrugated plate) has additionalperforations, which provide an air flow through the surface of thepressure-exerting plate upwards towards the sole of the foot.

Even if an elastic cover of the pressure-exerting plate is carried outfrom the top, nevertheless, correspondingly profiled recesses, holes orperforations can be arranged in the pressure-exerting plate.

A special advantage has been found when the elastic coating of thecorrugation structure or the flat structure of the pressure-exertingplate is carried out with a plastic material that forms a memory effect,because then the user's sole of the foot rolls in a particularly gentleand pressure-peak avoiding manner on the surface of the corrugated orplanar pressure-exerting plate.

In the specified embodiment, a pure sine form of the corrugationstructure is shown both for the structured sole and thepressure-exerting plate. However, the invention is not limited thereto.

Other corrugation forms can be used both in the structured solepreferably made of spring steel as well as in the flexurally elasticpressure-exerting plate.

In particular, it may be provided that the corrugated, rounded,continuous structures of the corrugation crests are now replaced bystraight lines and that the—previously rounded—maximum of a well crestis replaced by a horizontal straight line.

Instead of such a sinusoidal corrugation form, therefore, all othercorrugation forms are possible, in particular the previously describedtrapezoidal profile. Asymmetric profile shapes are also possible forboth the structured sole and the pressure-exerting plate covering thestructured sole at least partially.

In a preferred exemplary embodiment, it is provided that the lateral airoutlets, which are present at the corrugation structure sideways, can bearranged only in the area of the forefoot, while in the back foot areasuch lateral air outlet openings are not provided. There, theventilation ducts are hermetically tightly closed and thus formair-filled compression spaces with special spring properties.

There are several preferred embodiments of the insole or inner soleaccording to the invention.

If an inner sole is used in the embodiment, then it is necessary toprovide the spring steel sole at the bottom towards the sole with aflexurally elastic full-surface cover or a partial edge frame in orderto provide a lasting allowance on the upper material.

If, on the other hand, the spring steel sole is used as an insole, sucha textile cover in the vicinity of the sole is not necessary.

Even if the textile membrane or textile cover of an underside of thespring steel sole in the vicinity of the sole is omitted, theinstallation as an inner sole in a footwear would still be possible ifthe flexurally elastic spring steel sole was laterally sprayed onto theupper material with an elastomeric plastic.

It is also possible to install it as an inner sole if the lastingallowance is glued to the underside of the spring steel sole.

It is also advantageous that the pressure-exerting plate, which coversthe flexurally elastic spring steel sole as an elastic membrane, can nowbe equipped with a corrugation structure only over a part of the lengthof the insole or the inner sole.

In another embodiment, however, it can also extend over the entirelength of the surface of the underlying spring-elastic sole. Thepressure-exerting plate can therefore be shortened in length.

The corrugation structure of the pressure-exerting plate can thereforeonly extend over the sole or else over the entire area.

It is also possible to arrange the air outlet holes not only on theside, but also upwards. The corrugation structure of thepressure-exerting plate can be omitted in the rear area, where a heelwedge is provided, which can then form hollow ducts, but which have noventilation function. Such hollow ducts, however, result in anadditional suspension capacity of the entire sole structure, because theairtight hollow ducts existing in the closed compressible air inletslead to an additional damping when walking.

In an advantageous further development of the invention, it may beprovided that the pressure-exerting plate is formed in multilayer andpreferably has two different Shore hardnesses.

On the corrugation structural side, with which said plate rests directlyon the corrugated surface of the spring-elastic sole, it has a Shorehardness of 75, for example. This hardness is harder than the softer toplayer facing the sole of the foot, for example with a Shore hardness of40. This results in a bedding effect of the sole of the foot resting onthe pressure-exerting plate, because the relatively hard underside ofthe pressure-exerting plate now lies directly with its hard surface onthe corrugation structure of the spring steel sole and leads to thedesired reinforced pumping effect, while the surface of thepressure-ventilation sole in the vicinity of the sole has a beddingeffect for the sole of the foot of the user resting thereon.

Instead of the multi-layer, single-unit embodiment of thepressure-exerting plate with two different Shore hardnesses, it is alsopossible to provide an insert, which is directly connected to theunderside of the pressure-exerting plate and acts upon the corrugationstructure of the spring steel sole in the sense of a pumping structurein order to be used, so to speak, as a reinforcement sheet or as a pumpeffect plate to increase the ventilation effect on the spring steel solebelow, while the remaining areas of the pressure-exerting plate now onlyform the soft surface of the pumping plate.

In a further development, it is provided that the cavities formed in thecorrugation structure of the spring steel sole in combination with thepressure-exerting plate above are filled with an open-cell foam or thesame space-filling and air-bearing elastomeric plastic. Similarly,substances enriched with activated carbon can be arranged in theair-bearing cavities.

It may also be provided to coat at least the air-bearing cavities of thepressure-exerting plate and/or the spring steel sole in an antibacterialand/or deodorizing manner.

For a spring steel sole made of metal, the antibacterial coating with acopper-II oxide coating is suitable.

If the pressure-exerting plate also consists of an easily bendable,elastic metal plate or an equivalent plastic plate, it can also beprovided with a suitable antibacterial coating.

As the air-bearing cavities filling material, an air-permeable honeycombstructure may also be provided in the longitudinal direction of thecavities, which is compressible, whereby the air contained therein canescape at compression by the pressure-exerting plate above it. Thishoneycomb structure can also be coated in a deodorizing and/orantibacterial manner.

Incidentally, it is not necessary to solve the problem that thecorrugation structure of the pressure-exerting plate is exactlycomplementary (mirror image) to the corrugation structure of the springsteel sole below. Such an embodiment is preferred because of the goodefficiency of the ventilation, because with such a complementarystructure each corrugation crest of the pressure-exerting plate forms aventilation duct running approximately in the transverse direction witheach corrugation valley of the structured sole. However, the inventionis not limited thereto.

Rather, it may be provided in another embodiment that, for example, onlyevery second or every third corrugation of the pressure-exerting plateforms a pressure ventilation duct with the underlying complementarycorrugation of the spring steel sole, while the areas lying in betweenare flat and have no or only a reduced pressure ventilation function.This gives rise to the advantage that areas of the pressure-exertingplate are connected in a form-fitting manner to the corrugationstructure of the structured sole and thus an improved displacementprotection in the axial direction between the pressure-exerting plateand the structured sole is provided.

In a second embodiment it may be provided that certain changes are madeto the pressure-exerting plate for fixing the pressure-exerting plate onthe corrugation structure of the structured sole in an improved manner.

In such a first embodiment, it is provided that the corrugation valleysof the pressure-exerting plate are not formed continuously andarc-shaped, but as flat webs or are shaped as arch webs. This type ofweb formation ensures an improved attachment of the pressure-exertingplate on the corrugation crests of the underlying structured sole. Forfastening in the area of the flat or arch webs of the pressure-exertingplate on the corrugation crests of the structured sole, a clampingconnection or a welded joint or another form-fit connection can be used.

It may also be provided that the structured sole has recesses, holes orperforations in the area of the corrugation crests in which the materialof the pressure-exerting plate itself or its adhesive engage in aform-fitting manner and are anchored there.

In another version, a mechanical connection between thepressure-exerting plate and the structured sole is provided.Advantageously, these can be mechanically acting snap-in or clampingconnections. In this case, bumps, bolts or jacks are formed at thebottom of the pressure-exerting plate, which are formed in assigned,shape-adjusted recesses in the structured sole and are locked there. Thekinematic inversion of such a compound is also possible, whereby bumps,bolts or jacks protruding from the surface of the structured sole engageinto shape-adjusted recesses of the above-laying pressure-exertingplate.

In a further development of the invention, a novel structure of thestructured sole in connection with the mounted pressure-exerting plateis provided.

It is a stabilization edge consisting of an elastomeric plastic, whichencloses the structured sole on the side face with its corrugationstructure and which encloses the structured sole with an additionalcorrugated edge of for example 8 mm. The edge frame covers the edge ofthe structured sole and is glued or foamed or sprayed thereon. With itsouter area, it extends about 8 mm beyond the outline of the spring steelsole and sets the corrugation structure of the steel sole and thus alsothe ventilation structure of the pressure-ventilation sole.

The corrugated edge frame facilitates the attachment of thepressure-ventilation sole to the shaft of an item of footwear.

No tools or holding agents need to engage to the structured sole, butonly at the surrounding stabilizing edge, and thus it is easier tofasten such a pressure-ventilation sole to the shaft of an item offootwear with a Strobel construction or a lasting allowance.

The specified dimensions for the surrounding stabilization edge with awidth of for example 16 or 18 mm are only preferred, wherein 8 mm on theinside of the structured sole enclose the edge and 8 mm protrude fromthe outline of the structured sole. Other dimensions can also be used.

Similarly, instead of an edge frame, which covers the structured solewith preferably an edge of 8 mm laying on the inside, it is alsopossible to allow a full-surface covering of the structured sole by thestabilizing edge.

Furthermore, it is possible that the stabilizing edge with itsventilation structure does not continue the corrugation structure of thestructured sole on each corrugation, but rather it may be provided inthis embodiment that the stabilizing edge only continues every second orthird corrugation of the structural corrugation and fills eachcorrugation lying in between completely in a flush-aligned manner inorder to provide a modified bending stability of the structured soleand, in particular, in order to influence the bending behavior of thespring steel sole.

For all embodiments, it is preferable that the pressure-exerting platecontinues the corrugation structure of the structured sole radially tothe outside, said corrugation structure preferably consisting of afoamed plastic (polyurethane foam) and also protruding above the outlineof the structured sole, for example, by a dimension of about 8 mm, forexample, such that the corrugated stabilizing edge and thepressure-exerting plate lying there overlap in the area of thecircumferential edge, cover each other and form their own ventilationstructure, which continues the ventilation structure of thepressure-ventilation sole in an air-locking manner in the directiontowards the inside of an item of footwear.

For better air flow, it may also be provided that the pressure-exertingplate has arc-shaped cutouts in the edge-side opening areas on theinside of an item of footwear.

The claimed subject matter of this invention follows not only from thesubject of the individual claims, but also from the combination of theindividual claims together.

All information and features disclosed in the documents, including theabstract, especially the spatial form presented in the drawings, areclaimed as substantial to the invention, to the extent that they are newto the prior art, either individually or in combination. The use of theterms “substantial” or “according to the invention,” or “substantial tothe invention” is subjective and does not imply that the features mustnecessarily form part of one or more claims.

In the following text, the invention will be explained in more detailbased on drawings depicting only one of the possible embodiments.

Here, the drawings and their description reveal other features andadvantages of the invention that are substantial to the invention, inwhich:

FIG. 1 shows a top view on an embodiment of a structured sole with apressure-exerting plate covering the structured sole (indicated)

FIG. 2 shows a partial cross-section of the arrangement according toFIG. 1 in the direction of line II-II in the unloaded condition of thepressure-exerting plate

FIG. 3 shows the same representation according to FIG. 2 with loadedpressure-exerting plate

FIG. 4 shows an embodiment modified relative to FIG. 3, in which thepressure-exerting plate consists of an elastomeric deformable plate

FIG. 5 shows a cross-section according to the line V-V in FIG. 1

FIG. 6 shows a schematic representation of the plate-shapedpressure-exerting plate on the structured sole under the effect of a ribstructure of FIG. 7

FIG. 7 shows a modified exemplary embodiment compared to FIG. 2 with apressure-exerting plate having a corrugated structure

FIG. 8 shows a modified embodiment compared to FIG. 7, in which amulti-layer pressure-exerting plate is shown

FIG. 9 shows a modified version compared to FIGS. 7 and 8, in which theair-bearing compression spaces are filled with a suitable air-bearingmaterial.

FIG. 10 shows a modified version from the above versions, which showsthat the corrugation profile of the pressure-exerting plate may differfrom the corrugation profile of the structured sole.

FIG. 11 shows a cross-section of an embodiment of a pressure-exertingplate with flat webs

FIG. 12 shows a cross-section of a connection between thepressure-exerting plate and the structured sole having apressure-exerting plate with arch webs in a second embodiment

FIG. 13 shows a view of the pressure-ventilation sole from above withrepresentation of the pressure-exerting plate which is in the vicinityof the sole

FIG. 14 shows a view of the pressure-ventilation sole from below

FIG. 15 shows an enlarged side view of the heel area of thepressure-ventilation sole in the direction of the XV arrow in FIG. 14

FIG. 16 shows an enlarged side view of the forefoot area of thepressure-ventilation sole in the direction of the arrow XVI in FIG. 14

FIG. 17 shows a side view of the pressure-ventilation sole

FIG. 17A shows a schematized partial cross-section through apressure-ventilation sole

FIG. 18 shows a sub-view of the pressure-ventilation sole with a borderframe represented in dashed lines.

FIG. 1 shows a structured sole 1 consisting of a spring material, whichhas been described in detail in the above-mentioned documents.

Reference is made to the relevant documents with regard to the functionand structure of such a structured sole 1. The structured sole 1 allowsa rolling movement in the longitudinal direction of the structured sole,but a deflection in a vertical direction for this purpose is preventedby the fact that it has a cross-stability and a longitudinal stabilityby means of the oblique arrangement of the corrugations 2 of thecross-profiling relative to the longitudinal axis.

This is achieved by the fact that the individual corrugations 2 of thecross-profiling extend at least in the forefoot area at an angle between70 and 85 degrees, preferably 77 degrees, to the longitudinal centerline.

Thus, the corrugations do not deform in the walking movement in thesense of compression, as it was recognized in the prior art asdisadvantageous in several respects: they are instead stable.

As a result, the structured sole 1 consists of a spring steel or acomparable plastic material and has an angle to the rib-shapedcross-profiling running at an angle relative to the longitudinal centerline 5, said cross-profiling being formed as a corrugation profile andconsisting of a number of consecutive corrugations 7, 8 of which eachcorrugation consists of a corrugation crest 11 and a subsequentcorrugation valley 12.

There are also holes 9 in the area of cross-profiling.

The cross-profiling in the heel area 3 has a different angle thancomparatively the cross-profiling in the forefoot area 4.

The reference numeral 6 is also used to indicate the COP line, whichresults from the use of the structured sole 1 with the user's weight onthe structured sole 1 and during the walking process.

According to the invention, the structured sole 1 is now covered by aplate-shaped, flexurally elastic pressure-exerting plate 10, whose outeroutline is slightly larger than that of the structured sole.

According to the invention, since it is provided that thepressure-exerting plate 10 covers the corrugation crests from above (seeFIG. 2) in an air-locking manner and as effectively as possible, it canbe seen from the comparison between FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 that during thewalking process the pressure-exerting plate 10 is now displaced due toits support on the stable corrugation crests 11 of the structured sole 1in the area of the corrugation valleys 12 into the respectivecorrugation valley 12, as this is shown with the bending line 15′ inFIG. 2.

The previously flat and continuous bending line 15 of the unformedpressure-exerting plate 10 passes during the walking process into thedeformed bend line 15′ and thus a compression effect occurs in the areaof the corrugation valleys 12, such that this area is called compressionspace 17, in which in the longitudinal direction an air flow and amoisture transport takes place in the arrow direction 13.

This means that the air and moisture transport in the longitudinaldirection of the compression space 17 is carried out, namely in the areaof the corrugation valleys 12 of the structured sole 1, such that thisair flow and moisture transport at the end faces of the gutter-shapedcorrugation valleys 12 reaches outwards and is directed in the directionof arrow 14 through the lateral outlines of the pressure-exerting plate10 upwards into the interior of an item of footwear.

It may also be provided that the pressure-exerting plate 10 has avariety of holes 16. such that the air flow that is generated in thegutter-shaped compression space 17, additionally flows upwards in thedirection of the arrow 19 through the pressure-exerting plate 10 intothe interior of an item of footwear and thus hits directly on the footunderside of the user.

Thus. the pressure-exerting plate 10 deforms approximately in acorrugated manner in the form of the pressure-exerting plate 10′ intothe corrugation structure of the structured sole 1.

But because the corrugation crests 11 form a counter bearing for thepressure-exerting plate 10 and on the other hand the corrugation valleys12 are supported on the underside by means of a footwear-side counterplate 18, it results in the described compression effect and compressionspace 17.

This is shown in FIG. 3. It can be seen that a strong volume reductiontakes place in the compression space 17 due to the fact that thepressure-exerting plate 10 is deformed in its position 10′ into thecorrugation valleys 12 of the structured sole 1. The gutter-shapedcorrugation valleys of the structured sole can therefore also be calledventilation ducts 21, through which the air stream flows out in thevicinity of the face end from the ventilation ducts 21 in the directionof arrow 13 and also in the direction of arrow 19 through thepressure-exerting plate 10.

It may be provided that the support points (connection points 29) withwhich the plate-shaped pressure-exerting plate 10 rests on thecorrugation valleys 12 of the structured sole 1, are additionallysecured against longitudinal and/or transverse displacement. Here, abonding can take place or the pressure-exerting plate may be held on thecorrugation structure of the structured sole by mechanical fastenerssuch as rivets, screws, spot welding, mechanical locking agents,mechanical suspension connections or the like.

FIG. 4 shows that instead of a plate-shaped flexurally elasticpressure-exerting plate 10, a pressure-exerting plate consisting of asoft elastic material 20 can be used, which preferably consists of anelastomeric material, such as PU foam, natural or synthetic rubber, aPDMA plastic or a closed-cell foamed plastic.

In such a pressure-exerting plate consisting of an elastomeric material20, 20′, it is only required that the material deforms back to itsoriginal plate-shaped state under pressure load (see FIG. 4), so thatsuch a pressure-exerting plate is also made of a soft-elastic materialwhich preferably consists of a closed-cell or open-cell PU foam oranother suitable plastic material.

Otherwise, the same description applies to the same parts of FIG. 4 aswas given on the basis of FIGS. 1 to 3.

FIG. 5 shows a cross-section through the structured sole with an appliedpressure-exerting plate 10, 20, 30, wherein it becomes clear from thecross-section of FIG. 5 that the entire arrangement can now be calledpressure-ventilation sole 40, because the structured sole 1 with theapplied pressure-exerting plate 10, 20, 30 results in a group that isreferred to in the following as pressure-ventilation sole 40. Thepressure-ventilation sole can therefore be used as an insole or as asolidly integrated inner sole in a footwear structure.

From the sectional view from FIG. 5, it is clear that such apressure-ventilation sole (consisting of the structured sole 1 and oneof the embodiments of a pressure-exerting plate 10, 20, 30) now forms aunit, so that this unit can be inserted either as an insole on anexisting inner sole in an item of footwear structure of a footwear orthe entire unit of the pressure-ventilation sole 40 can also be directlyintegrated into an item of footwear structure as an inner sole.

As an example, in FIG. 5 the installation is shown as an insole, whereinit is recognizable that starting from a lower, bottom-side sole 27 anupper lasting allowance 25 is formed, which is formed sideways at adistance plate 26 arranged above the sole 27.

The upper material 22 of an item of footwear structure is held in thislasting allowance 25. The connection between the upper material 22 andthe lasting allowance 25 can be done by a Strobel construction or bygluing.

In the structure shown according to FIG. 5, it can be seen that theinner sole 24 is formed directly by the structured sole 1 and from thecross-section (not to scale) it is further recognizable that acorrugation valley 12 of the structured sole 1 was cut through, therebyresulting in a corrugation crest in the longitudinal direction of thecross-profiling. In this interspace, the respective gutter-shapedcompression space 10 is formed, through which an air transport in thearrow directions 13 and 16 takes place.

FIG. 5 therefore describes both the use of the pressure-ventilation sole40 as insole 23, but also as inner sole 24, which is directly integratedinto the footwear structure of an item of footwear. It can be any knownfootwear type, e.g. for work footwear, casual footwear, sneakers,sandals, moccasins, women's pumps and the like.

Likewise, the ventilation paths of the forced ventilation are shown, andit is recognizable in one embodiment that one part of the air streamflows at the inside of the upper material 22 into the interior of anitem of footwear, while another part of the air stream flows through theholes 16 in the pressure-exerting plate 10, 20, 30 upwards into theinterior of an item of footwear against the sole of the foot of theuser.

FIG. 5 shows further ventilation options for the interior of an item offootwear, which can be used in a unique setting or in combination withthe aforementioned embodiments of ventilation for all types of insoleand/or inner sole.

Thus, the arrow in the direction of arrow 39 also shows the possibilitythat the forced air flow generated by the pressure-ventilation sole 40,40A, 40B can also flow out sideways in the upper material by assignedrecesses 22. It is preferred if, in the area of these recesses, asemipermeable membrane 27 is arranged, which allows air exchange to theoutside, but prevents the penetration of moisture inwards.

Furthermore, as a further ventilation and venting option, it isindicated that starting from the pressure-ventilation sole 40, 40A, 40B, which is used as an insole or as an inner sole, direct ventilationand venting can also be carried out through an item of footwear sole 27of an item of footwear.

Again, in the range of recesses 38 in the vicinity of the sole, asemipermeable membrane 37 may be arranged to allow a forced air passagethrough the recesses 38 vicinity of the sole, without moisture beingable to penetrate through the recesses 38 inwards into an item offootwear.

FIG. 6 shows schematized the function of a pressure-exerting plate,whereby only a plate-shaped pressure-exerting plate 10, 20 is shown forsimplification. The same principle also applies to a corrugationstructure with pressure-exerting plate 30, which will still be describedon the basis of FIG. 7.

From FIG. 6, it is recognizable that by the user's body weight, which isexerted in the direction of arrow 28 from the foot sole to the top ofthe pressure-exerting plate 10, 20, 30, now a deformation force isapplied on the pressure-exerting plate 10, 20, 30 perpendicular orapproximately perpendicular to its plane, which thus deforms itself intothe corrugation valleys 12 of the structured sole 1 due to therelatively not formable structure of the underlying structured sole 1and therefore provides a forced ventilation in the direction of thearrow 13 of the compression space formed thereby in the compressionspace 17 formed in the corrugation valley 12.

To increase the ventilation effect and to increase the volume of thecompression space 17, it is provided in a further development of theinvention that according to FIG. 7 the pressure-exerting plate 30 canalso have a corrugation structure 33, which is complementary to thecorrugation structure 11, 12 of the structured sole 1 and is shifted inthe longitudinal direction by a vibration (phase) relative to thecorrugation structure of the structured sole.

This means that each corrugation crest 31 of the corrugatedpressure-exerting plate 30 is opposite a corrugation valley 12 of theunderlying structured sole 1 and that, analogously, each corrugationvalley 32 of the corrugated pressure-exerting plate 30 rests in asealing manner on a corrugation crest 11 of the underlying structuredsole 1.

Thus, the displacement volume in the compression space 17 is doubledcompared to a purely plate-shaped pressure-exerting plate 10, 20,wherein the bending line 15′ indicates the deformation of the corrugatedpressure-exerting plate 30.

The bending elasticity of the corrugated pressure-exerting plate 30should be chosen in such a way that a deformation of the corrugationstructure 33 is possible, while such deformation of a corrugationstructure 11, 12 at the underlying structured sole 1 is not necessary.

FIG. 7 shows in another exemplary embodiment that also the corrugationstructure 33 of the pressure-exerting plate 30 can still carry anadditional elastomeric coating 34, which is preferably made of a softelastic, foam-like material.

This results in a flat surface at the top of the pressure-exerting plate30 and results in a pleasant rolling feeling for the foot of a user.

In another embodiment it may be provided that the elastomeric coating 34is significantly higher formed, i.e. that the corrugation crests 31 ofthe corrugated pressure-exerting plate 30 are still covered by theelastomeric coating 34 with a sufficient degree of coverage.

The material of the pressure-exerting plate 30 can preferably consist ofa deformable plastic material, such as a 2 to 4 mm thick plastic plate,into which the corrugation structure is imprinted or otherwise molded.

In all embodiments described, there is the advantage that forced orpressure ventilation in the interior of an item of footwear is causedsolely by a weight shift of the user's foot sole and it is a closedsystem which does not rely on the external supply of air by asemipermeable membrane.

In this known embodiment, it has shown that when using a semipermeablemembrane there are sealing problems with regard to water penetration.

Such problems do not have the presented pressure ventilation, because itis a self-contained pressure ventilation system arranged in an item offootwear interior, which is not dependent on the supply of air from theoutside via a semipermeable membrane.

There may also be a suction effect, in such a way that at a pressureload of the respective upper pressure-exerting plate 10, 20, 30, airfrom the interior of an item of footwear is sucked through thepressure-exerting plate into the corrugation valleys of the structuredsole and, in the event of a different weight shift or walking movement,the suction from the interior is now displaced at its end face from thecompression chamber to the inside of the upper material of an item offootwear.

Therefore, not only an air and moisture transport takes place verticallyto the user's longitudinal axis, but also an air and moisture transporttakes place in the plane of the structured sole and is deflected upwardsat the inside of the upper material of an item of footwear.

FIG. 8 shows a pressure-exerting plate 30 consisting of 2 layers, theupper position 30 a of which facing the sole of the foot of the user isdesigned in a soft manner, while the lower layer 30 b, which liesdirectly on the corrugation structure of the structured sole 1, isformed in a harder manner. It is therefore a multilayer layer structure41.

FIG. 9 shows as a new exemplary embodiment that the air-deflectingcompression chambers 17 and the thus formed ventilation ducts 21 can befilled in a room-filling manner with an open-pored, air-deflecting andcompressible filling material 42. It can be an open-celled foam orplastic foam impregnated with activated carbon or other deodorizingand/or antibacterial substances or a similar honeycomb structure.

FIG. 10 shows that it is not necessary to achieve the object of theinvention that each corrugation of the structured sole 1 alsocorresponds to a corrugation of the pressure-exerting plate 30, 30 a, 30b, 30 c. Thus it may be provided in this exemplary embodiment that thepressure-exerting plate 30 c has corrugation valleys, which at leastpartially engage in the corrugation valleys of the structured sole 1 ina form-fitting manner and thus secure the corrugated pressure-exertingplate 30 c on the corrugation structure to avoid displacement of thestructured sole 1 in the longitudinal direction. This allows theformation of compression spaces 17, 17′ with different volume. Inanother exemplary embodiment, the compression chamber 17′ can also becompletely omitted, because, for example, every second or thirdcorrugation structure of the pressure-exerting plate 30 c adapts to andfills out the corrugation structure of the structured sole 1 completelyand in a form-fitting manner.

In the exemplary embodiment according to FIGS. 11 and 12, differentformations of the pressure-exerting plate 30 are shown, however, theseembodiments are also applicable on the embodiments shown in the previousdrawings of the pressure-exerting plate 30 a, 30 b, 30 c.

In order to achieve an improved connection between the pressure-exertingplate 30 and the underlying corrugation structure of the structured sole1, it is provided in the exemplary embodiment according to FIG. 11 thatthe corrugation valleys of the pressure-exerting plate 30 are formed asflat webs 43 a. This results in an improved adaptation of thecorrugation structure of the pressure-exerting plate 30 to thecorrugation structure of the structured sole 1.

In the exemplary embodiment according to FIG. 12, it is shown that theflat webs 43 a can also be formed as arch webs 43 b to achieve an evenmore improved adjustment of the pressure-exerting plate 30 in the areaof the corrugation crests of the structured sole 1.

As indicated in the general description, the connection between thestructured sole 1 and the pressure-exerting plate 10, 10′, 30 above itcan take place by means of different types of connection, whereinwelding or adhesive joints and other fabric compounds were mentioned, aswell as mechanical connections. Also any combination between mechanicalconnections and the above-mentioned weld or adhesive connections ispossible.

FIG. 13 shows the top view on a pressure-ventilation sole 40, 40 a-ewith a view of the pressure-exerting plate 30 d facing the sole of thefoot in the design as insole. Under a textile fabric 48, the corrugationstructure 33 of the pressure-exerting plate is easily recognizable andthe foot sole rolling on the corrugation structure 33 transfers thepressure load to the corrugation structure 33 of the pressure-exertingplate 30 d, which is thereby displaced into the stable corrugationstructure 11, 12 of the structured sole 1. The corrugation structure 33of the pressure-exerting plate 30 d arranged in the heel area 3 is inthis exemplary embodiment hermetically closed from the side and forms anair-filled compression space, which acts as an air cushion when walking.

FIG. 14 shows the 180-degree top view on the pressure-ventilation sole40, 40 a-e with a pressure-exerting plate with an elastomeric pressurebody 53, which consists of a foamed, soft elastic plastic body.

The corrugation structure of the structured sole 1 continues on the edgeside into the 30 d pressure-exerting plate, which protrudes in asurrounding manner over the structured sole 1. Thus, it is ensured thatthe air streams flowing between the corrugation structure 11, 12 of thestructured sole 1 and the complementary corrugation structure 33 of thepressure-exerting plate 30 d in the direction of arrow 13 are locatedsideways from the ventilation ducts 21. A part of the air streamsescapes through the holes 9 of the structured sole 1. Another part ofthe air streams can escape from the sole of the foot throughperforations in the pressure-exerting plate 30 d. It is shown that theventilation structures extend only to part of the forefoot and to theheel area. The invention is not restricted thereto. As shown in FIG. 1,the ventilation structures can extend completely over the entire surfaceand meet in the connection area 58.

This applies to all exemplary embodiments, in particular also to FIG.13, where only a part of the top of the pressure-ventilation sole isrepresented with the ventilation structure.

FIG. 15 shows the heel area 3 of the pressure-ventilation sole 30 d,where it is recognizable that the elastomeric pressure body, which ispart of the pressure-exerting plate 30 d, is formed thickened in theheel area.

FIG. 16 shows the forefoot area 49, 50 of the pressure-ventilation sole30 d with the upward pointing structured sole 1, which in case of use isat the bottom of an item of footwear and is either part of an insole orpart of the inner sole of an item of footwear.

In of this perspective representation, the lateral openings of theventilation ducts 21 are shown. The corrugation structure 31, 32 of thepressure-exerting plate 30 d is complementary to the corrugationstructure 11, 12 of the structured sole 1. The embodiment according toFIGS. 13 to 18 corresponds to the exemplary embodiments according toFIGS. 3 to 10.

The ventilation ducts 21 formed by the complementary corrugationstructures of the structured sole and pressure-exerting plate 30, 30 a-dhave a particularly large volume and cause an effective ventilationeffect. In addition, the user has the feeling of “running on air.”

In the side view of FIG. 17, the same parts are marked with the samereference numerals. The corrugation structure of the structured sole 1is arranged only in the forefoot area and in the heel area. Thecorrugation structure 33 of the pressure-exerting plate 30 d is providedonly in the forefoot area. The pressure-exerting plate 30 d isstructured in three layers and consists of the plate-shapedpressure-exerting plate 20, which forms the corrugation structure 33complementary to the structured sole 1 in the forefoot area. Thepressure-exerting plate is connected to the soft-elastic pressure body53, which is thickened in the heel area and carries a textile fabric 48as the top cover.

FIG. 17A shows schematized a partial cross-section through apressure-ventilation sole, with the representation of the basicprinciple of the invention. The pressure-ventilation sole according toall described designs thus forms an air bed with pumping effect suchthat the human sole of the foot can roll on it.

Even if the air-conducting tube ducts (=compression ducts) are filledwith an elastic, open or closed-pored material in a preferred exemplaryembodiment, the cross-section of the respective tube duct should consistof at least 40% of its cross-section of air.

In the previous exemplary embodiments, it was assumed that thestructured sole has the previously described corrugations 2 at the soleside (bottom). In order to allow better processing of such a structuredsole 40 a, b, c, d, e as insole or as inner sole in a footwear, it isprovided in an advantageous further design that the corrugationsarranged at the bottom of the structured sole 1 are filled with afilling material 57 in order to achieve a smooth, sole-side adhesivesurface 56.

Such a filling material is also referred to in the technical language as“outpouring mass” and can consist, for example, of a pourable wax or anelastic plastic, e.g. a polyurethane foam.

This makes it easy to insert the pressure-ventilation sole onto aninsole present in the vicinity of the footwear into an item of footwear.When used as a sole chassis for installation as an inner sole, thewidened edge frame is attached to an item of footwear shaft (see thefollowing FIG. 18) and the now smooth underside of thepressure-ventilation sole forms the opposite surface for the outsole ofan item of footwear to be attached there, which can be glued, welded,injected or sewn there.

FIG. 18 shows such a modified example of an execution of apressure-ventilation sole 40, for which all explanations of the aboveexamples apply. A particularly good mechanical processing of thepressure-ventilation sole results when a flexurally elastic edge frame44 is formed at the bottom of the corrugated structured sole 1. However,all other features of the pressure-ventilation sole remain the same.

With the dashed lines 54, 55 in FIG. 18, such a flexurally elastic edgeframe 44 is indicated. In practice, the edge frame is considered to bethin plastic plate or film glued or injected at the bottom of thestructured sole 1.

The edge frame 44 has preferably the same corrugation form as thestructured sole 1 and continues the corrugation form of the structuredsole 1 sideways to the outside. Thus, the compressible ventilation ductstructure 46 formed from the edge frame 44 and the pressure-exertingplate 20, 20′ formed on it continues into the ventilation structure ofthe pressure-ventilation sole 40, 40 a-40 e.

The same image also applies to the formation as an inner sole. For thesimpler description, the following description describes the use as aninner sole. In order to simplify the integration of the structured sole1 with the mount of an item of footwear shaft by means of a Strobleconstruction or by a lasting allowance, it is provided that thestructured sole 1 is connected to the plastic-made, elastomeric edgeframe 44 from the edge side—preferably circumferentially. The toolsnecessary for the lasting allowance can then act upon the edge frame 44and do not have to act directly upon the hard structured sole 1.

In order to achieve an improvement of the air outflow at the inside ofan item of footwear, it may be provided that the mouths of theventilation ducts 21 in the edge frame 44 are formed as arc-shapedcut-outs 47. This embodiment can be used for all exemplary embodimentsof FIGS. 1 to 18.

For all exemplary embodiments of FIGS. 1 to 18, the corrugatedstructures of the structured sole and thus also the associatedventilation structures can be used either over the entire surface areaof the pressure-ventilation sole 40 or even only over a smaller part ofthe surface. FIG. 1 shows only a part of the structures used that do notextend over the entire surface.

In this drawing, however, it is schematically shown that the drawnstructures can extend to the connection area 58 between the forefootarea and the heel area, so that the structures arranged at differentangles to each other of the front foot and heel area meet in theconnection area 58.

REFERENCE NUMERALS

-   -   1 Structured sole    -   2 Corrugations    -   3 Heel area    -   4 Forefoot area    -   5 Longitudinal center line    -   6 COP line (barefoot)    -   7 Corrugation (at 3)    -   8 Corrugation (at 4)    -   9 Holes    -   10 Pressure-exerting plate 10′    -   11 Corrugation crest    -   12 Corrugation valley    -   13 Arrow direction    -   14 Arrow direction    -   15 Bending line (of 10)    -   15′ Bending line    -   16 Hole (in 10)    -   17 Compression space,    -   18 Counter plate    -   19 Arrow direction    -   20 Pressure plate 20′    -   21 Ventilation duct    -   22 Upper material    -   23 Insole    -   24 Inner sole    -   25 Lasting allowance    -   26 Spacer plate    -   27 Sole    -   28 Arrow direction (pressure force)    -   29 Connection point    -   30 Pressure plate    -   31 Corrugation crest (of 30) 30 a, 30 b, 30 c    -   32 Corrugation valley (of 30)    -   33 Corrugation structure (of 30)    -   34 Elastomeric coating    -   35 Contact surface    -   36 Arrow direction    -   37 Semipermeable membrane    -   38 Recess    -   39 Arrow direction    -   40 a, b, c, d Pressure ventilation sole    -   41 Layer structure    -   42 Filler material    -   43 Web        -   43 a Flat web        -   43 b Arch webs    -   44 Edge frame    -   45 Coverage area    -   46 Ventilation duct structure (of 44)    -   47 Arc-shaped cutout (optional)    -   48 Textile fabric    -   49 Area of the toes    -   50 Area of the ball of the foot    -   51 Area of the midfoot    -   52 Heel area    -   53 Elastomeric pressure body (30 d)    -   54 Inner delimitation    -   55 Outer delimitation    -   56 Adhesive surface    -   57 Filling material    -   58 Connection area

1. Insole or inner sole which is intended for an item of footwear and isdesigned in the form of a pressure-ventilation sole (40 a-e) such that aflexurally elastic pressure-exerting plate (10, 20, 30) rests on a lowersole, said pressure-exerting plate being displaceable by the user's bodyweight, when the user is moving, into transverse profiling in theinterspace between the pressure-exerting plate (10, 20, 30), which is inthe vicinity of the sole of the foot, and the lower sole and displacingthe contained air volume in the manner of ventilation, characterized inthat the lower sole of the pressure-ventilation sole (40 a-e) isconfigured in the form of a corrugated structured sole (1) from a springsteel or a comparable plastic material, the transverse profiling thereofbeing designed in the form of a corrugated profile and being stable, andresistant to deformation, in relation to a compressive force actingvertically on the structured sole (1), and that the pressure-exertingplate (10, 20, 30), which is in the vicinity of the sole of the foot,can be displaced into the dimensionally stable corrugation valleys (12)of the structured sole (1) in the manner of a pumping and/or compressionplate.
 2. Insole or inner sole according to claim 1, characterized inthat the respective corrugation valley (12) of the structured sole (1)forms a gutter-shaped pressure ventilated compression space (17) withthe pressure-exerting plate (10, 20, 30) covering the corrugation valley(12), wherein an air or moisture circulation is provided in thelongitudinal extension of said pressure ventilated compression space. 3.Insole or inner sole according to claim 2, characterized in that thegutter-shaped compression space (17) is open on one side to the endside.
 4. Insole or inner sole according to claim 2 or 3, characterizedin that the gutter-shaped compression space (17) can be ventilated andvented by means of perforations (9) in the structured sole (1). 5.Insole or inner sole according to claim 2 or 4, characterized in thatthe gutter-shaped compression space (17) can be ventilated and vented bymeans of holes (16) in the pressure-exerting plate (10, 20, 30). 6.Insole or inner sole according to claim 1 or 5, characterized in thatthe pressure-exerting plate (10) consists of a flat flexurally elasticplate which is suitable to deform itself flexibly into the corrugationvalleys (12) of the structured sole (1).
 7. Insole or inner soleaccording any of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that thepressure-exerting plate (20) consists of a flexurally elastic platehaving a corrugation structure, and that the corrugation structure (33)of the pressure-exerting plate (30) is complementary or partlycomplementary to the corrugation structure (33) of the structured sole(1).
 8. Insole or inner sole according to claim 7, characterized in thatthe corrugation valleys (32) of the corrugation structure (33) of thepressure-exerting plate (30) rests on the corrugation crests (11) of thestructured sole (1), and that the corrugation crests (31) of thepressure-exerting plate (30) are opposite the corrugation valleys (12)of the structured sole (1) and form the gutter-shaped,pressure-ventilated compression space (17).
 9. Insole or inner soleaccording to claim 7 or 8, characterized in that the corrugation crests(31) of the pressure-exerting plate (30) are suitable to form themselvesflexibly into the corrugation valleys (12) of the structured sole (1).10. Insole or inner sole according to claim 1 or 9, characterized inthat an elastomeric coating (34) is arranged directed to the sole of thefoot of the user on the top of the pressure-exerting plate (10, 20, 30),said coating being preferably formed from a memory-effect formingplastic material.
 11. Insole or inner sole according to one of claims 1to 10, characterized in that the pressure-exerting plate (10, 20, 30)has approximately the same area of the underlying structured sole (1).12. Insole or inner sole according to any of claims 1 to 11,characterized in that the pressure-ventilation sole (40,40 a, 40 b)consisting of structured sole (1) and pressure-exerting plate (10, 20,30) is designed as a half sole or as a full sole.
 13. Insole or innersole according to any of claims 1 to 12, characterized in that thepressure-ventilation sole (40, 40 a, 40 b) can be ventilated and ventedvia the upper material (22) and/or the sole of an item of footwear (27).14. Insole or inner sole according to claim 13, characterized in that asemipermeable membrane (37) is arranged in the area of the ventilationand venting openings.
 15. Insole or inner sole according to any ofclaims 1 to 14, characterized in that the structured sole (1) allows arolling movement in the longitudinal direction of the structured sole,but a deflection in a vertical direction for this purpose is preventedby the fact that it has a cross-stability and a longitudinal stabilityby means of the oblique arrangement of the corrugations (2) of thecross-profiling relative to the longitudinal axis.
 16. Insole or innersole according to claim 15, characterized in that the individualcorrugations (2) of the cross-profiling extend at least in the forefootarea at an angle between 70 and 85 degrees, preferably 77 degrees, tothe longitudinal center line.
 17. Insole or inner sole according to oneof claims 1 to 16, characterized in that at least the structured sole(1) is connected on the edge side of an elastomeric edge frame (44). 18.Insole or inner sole according to claim 17, characterized in that theedge frame (44) in connection with the pressure-exerting plate (20, 20′)resting thereon forms a ventilation duct structure (46), which isconnected in an air-tight manner with the ventilation ducts (21) of thepressure-ventilation sole (40, 40 a-40 e).